kscans

Chapter 29 - Hokkaido

Kaede-chan and I were at a long-established crab restaurant in Sapporo, Hokkaido.

"Senpai, look, look! It’s huge!"

Kaede-chan, sitting across the table, happily showed me a crab leg.

"It is big. Amazing."

It was bigger than Kaede-chan’s small face.

"I’m gonna shabu it."

Kaede-chan put the crab leg into the pot.

She’s gonna shabu it, she said. Doki doki.

"I’ll do it too."

I cast aside my wicked thoughts and put a crab leg into the pot.

"How long do we leave it in for?"

"It says two to three minutes. Well, whatever’s fine. We can eat it raw anyway."

"That’s true… Ah… Mmm! Delicious!"

Kaede-chan ate the crab with a look of pure bliss. Following her lead, I put some crab in my mouth, and the rich flavor of crab spread throughout.

"Amazing! It’s nothing like imitation crab!"

So good!

"Senpai, you’re going to get someone angry. Nom nom."

"You’re right. The grilled stuff is delicious too."

"Even the beer tastes better than usual, somehow."

"It does."

I’m so glad we came! I’m so glad I became an Adventurer!

Kaede-chan and I continued to enjoy the crab and drink our beer.

"Man, being nouveau riche is great."

"It really is. I never would have imagined coming to Hokkaido just to eat crab without any sightseeing back when I was a salaryman."

Hokkaido has many tourist spots and plenty of places to go. But Kaede-chan and I have barely done any sightseeing, aside from a casual look around Sapporo. We really just came here to eat crab. Well, we don’t have much time anyway.

"Let’s buy some souvenirs before we go home."

"Yeah. Though crab won’t fit in my fridge."

It’s a single-person fridge, so it’s small.

"You’ve got the money now, so why don’t we move? We can just buy a bigger fridge."

Neither of us cooks, so I doubt we’d use it much. Maybe for beer and frozen food? Even then, we’d probably eat out or get delivery.

"Living together, huh."

"I said roommates."

A man and a woman of our age being roommates is called living together. I’ve decided so.

"Considering your job, should we look for a place near Ikebukuro?"

"That goes for you too, senpai. Isn’t a place near my house fine?"

"Where is your house? Your place is definitely cleaner than mine, I’d rather drink there."

Kaede-chan stubbornly refuses to invite me to her home.

"Senpai, you try to slash things in people’s houses, so no. And you’d definitely dive onto my bed, so I don’t want you over."

"I wouldn’t do that."

"You do when you drink too much, don’t you."

Did I dive on her bed back in university, too? I’m really the worst.

"I won’t do it anymore."

"Well, I suppose you won’t. Back then, we were just students who didn’t know how to drink."

We did drink a lot of shots.

"It’s fine, it’s fine. So, where’s your place? It’s not like I’m going to go there."

We’re moving anyway.

"Nerima."

"Nerima… ah, well, that’s close enough."

She lives in a pretty decent place. As expected of a guild employee with Appraisal. Her annual salary is definitely better than mine was when I was a salaryman.

……Come to think of it, she said she’d treat me at first. At the time, I was half-seriously thinking of becoming her kept man.

"Alright, that works for me. Let’s look for a place later."

"Okay. Ah, I’m so full."

"Me too."

In the end, we ordered extra à la carte items on top of the course, so we ate a lot. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say we ate a lifetime’s worth of crab.

"That was delicious."

"It really was. Well, shall we head back to the hotel?"

"Thank you for the meal."

We paid the bill, left the restaurant, and started walking towards the hotel.

"It gets chilly here at night."

It’s still October, but Hokkaido is quite cold.

"It is. It’s cooling down my flushed body."

Kaede-chan, walking beside me, said that and linked her arm with mine.

"Kaede-chan, you’re so warm."

She smells nice, too. Though it’s the smell of crab.

"You’re warm too, senpai."

"Alright, let’s stop by a convenience store."

"Okay."

We stopped by a convenience store, bought some things, and returned to the hotel. We picked up the key we had left at the front desk and got into the elevator. We were the only ones inside, and Kaede-chan kept her arm linked with mine the entire time. To anyone who saw us, we would look like a couple.

When the elevator stopped at our floor, we got out and headed to our rooms.

When we reached my room, Kaede-chan unlinked her arm and stepped away. Then she walked to the adjacent room and stopped in front of the door.

"…Well then, senpai, I’ll come to your room after I take a bath."

Kaede-chan said with blushing cheeks and an upward glance, then went into her room.

I watched her go, then entered my room and took a shower. After my shower, I got on the bed and began to meditate.

I think about an hour passed since I started meditating. It was just before 11 PM. Perfect timing.

Then, I heard a knock on the door.

I got off the bed and went to the door. When I opened it, there stood my cute junior, her hair up and wearing the hotel’s provided yukata.

"Come in."

I opened the door wide and welcomed Kaede-chan into the room.

"…………Excuse me."

Kaede-chan slowly entered the room. As she passed by me, I caught a sweet, distinctly feminine scent, different from the smell of crab.

I sat down on the bed and looked at Kaede-chan, who was still standing.

"Have a seat."

"…Okay."

Kaede-chan sat right next to me. We were so close that our legs were practically touching. It was definitely that kind of distance.

"It’s a good time, isn’t it…"

It seems Kaede-chan was thinking the same thing as me. It certainly was a good time.

The Kaede-chan sitting next to me reached out and grabbed… not my hand, but the remote control.

"Now, let’s watch your grand appearance, senpai! Oh, scoot over a little. I can’t see the TV."

Kaede-chan pushed me.

"Okay. Oh, what are you drinking?"

Darn it! Who cares about the TV!

"Cassis, please."

I took a cassis soda and a beer from the provided refrigerator and handed the cassis soda to Kaede-chan.

"Senpai, senpai! It’s starting!"

Kaede-chan, at maximum excitement, pulled on my arm. Today was the day I, or rather, Eleanor-san, appeared on TV.

We were going to watch it together.

"Hey? What was that nice atmosphere from earlier about?"

"I thought it would make you happy, senpai."

Yeah, it was nice. I was happy.

"Well, I guess it’s fine…"

Feeling happy but also a little let down, I decided to watch the TV.